The news of the latest carnage in our schools was still agonizingly fresh and I spent my day consoling anxious and angry students. The vulgar, sociopathic demagogue in the White House continued to jab his chubby little fingers into the eyes of shell-shocked Americans. I worried about a friend in the hospital as we got news of the recent suicides of two others. Ready for solace, connection, communion and a cure for pain, we headed out in the snow to the Ogden Theater.

San Francisco’s garage/psych outfit Black Rebel Motorcycle Club have spent the last twenty years bringing darkly psychedelic garage rock to the masses, and their show at the Ogden on Thursday night proved they have the goods to deliver direct, soul-soothing, mind-numbing rock music; the ideal fare for a much needed service of rock and roll church.

A hypnotic, driving opening set by Night Beats set the perfect tone for the night. The band hails from Seattle but their spiritual home is Austin; their sound evokes the classic psych-tinged R&B of Roky Erickson and the 13th Floor Elevators, or…if Chuck Berry played with Jefferson Airplane as his backing band. Night Beats quickly warmed the undulating, energized Ogden Crowd, their controlled psychedelic frenzy the perfect soundtrack for overtaking the gloom of the day.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club emerged from darkness and fog, decked in black leather jackets, the sacred garments of rock. Their driving set featured music from their new album, Wrong Creatures, as well as a sampling of their strongest work from the several decades, including “Beat the Devil’s Tattoo” and “Spread Your Love.” BRMC’s stage presence emanates rock and roll cool, and their sound rides waves of reverb- always circling back to memorable, strong melodies.

We checked in with old friends, talked about our families, work, favorite new music. We were transported from the day’s chaos and trauma to a warm place of celebration, elevation, communion. We prayed.

Dec 12

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Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds announced the February release of their first new record since 2008 – “Push The Sky Away.”

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds are scheduled to release a new record – their 15th overall and first since 2008’s “Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!”“Push The Sky Away” will drop on February 18th (February 19th in the US). They’ve also announced some North American tour dates, including one at the Ogden on April 3rd (tickets on sale Thursday, December 6th at 10:00 am).

About the record, Cave said “… if I were to use that threadbare metaphor of albums being like children, then Push The Sky Away is the ghost-baby in the incubator and Warren’s loops are its tiny, trembling heart-beat.” As evidenced by the mystically intriguing cover and Cave’s remark, it seems we can expect brilliant new offering from the band. But see for yourself. Check out the streaming version of the record’s first single, “We No Who U R,” below, and take a gander at the trailer below that.

The new record was produced by Nick Launay (who also produced “Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!”and the two Grinderman albums) and recorded at La Fabrique, a studio located in a 19th Century mansion in the South of France. Reportedly, the walls of the main studio are lined with an shamefully desirable collection of classical vinyl. And the setting seems to have lent the warm, emotive spirit of all of that vinyl to its performance, if the first single is an accurate portrayal of the rest of the tracks.

Another insight from Cave about the new piece: “I enter the studio with a handful of ideas, unformed and pupal; it’s the Bad Seeds that transform them into things of wonder,” he explained. “Ask anyone who has seen them at work. They are unlike any other band on earth for pure, instinctive inventiveness.”

Take a look, and pre-order “Push The Sky Away.” Talk about a great Christmas idea….

Jul 10

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Mud. Mud and muppets. Those two words best describe the feeling inside the Ogden on Tuesday night, as the Melvins took over the venue on their last U.S. date before heading up to Canada.

As hot as Denver was that night, it’d be easy to chalk up the sweat and mugginess to the weather rather than the noise, but I’d swear it was much more the latter that pounded the snot out of the audience (a surprisingly small one). “Mud” describes that sound best – heavy, slippery, thick mud.

Read the whole review HERE, at Denvereverb.com! And see Joe McCabe’s fantastic shots!

Oct 09

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Gibby and the boys had some trouble packing interest in their latest show at The Ogden. (Photo: MySpace)

If you’d never seen Butthole Surfers before last Friday night’s show at the Ogden, then you were treated to a mild spectacle. On the other hand, if this show was a chance for you to revisit the band after their many years away from stages (as it was for me), chances are you found yourself more than a little disappointed. After existing almost entirely upon a reputation for wild, often violent and over-the-top live shows and a general band attitude that matched, their somnambulistic performance that night just didn’t cut it.

Aug 09

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. . . the five-piece showed the surging Denver throng that it has reached a sort of musical plateau, one where it can perform just about any collection of new, old and really old material with aplomb and brilliance. They can whip any crowd into a throbbing fury, and then easily coax it back into placidity.

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